Christ as the Last Adam
Last Updated on Tuesday, 30 November 1999 08:00 Written by Ward Tipton Monday, 08 June 2009 18:37
Non Fiction Writing Samples - Religion and Philosophy
One of the many parables that seem to lead to more questions than answers is the comparison of Christ to Adam. Going back to the whole thing with the “apple” it is easy to see why this can be confusing to some people. Eve was deceived by Satan but Adam sinned willfully. Since this was done before they had any offspring, sin and death have been passed down to all of us as their posterity. Had it not occurred in such a manner, I may not be sitting here writing this today but since it did, well, we all know the story I think.
Anyhow, given that this man committed the first act of sin under the display of his free will, it could be difficult to see how this compares to the only true path to Salvation which is Christ or the Messiah. In order to get the comparison and the importance of the sacrifice that was made on both accounts, it is important to go back before the thing with the apple and look at it from the very beginning of Adam's time here on earth.
Adam was given a literal paradise here on earth and dominion over all living things on it. After all of the naming had taken place, Eve was given to him as a companion and they were instructed to go forth and multiply and take dominion over all of the living things of the earth. Let me clarify that further in saying that he was given everlasting life in a paradise earth. He was not given immortality but an everlasting life as long as he obeyed God and gave the proper praise and thanks to God for what had been provided for him.
Thus, it seems clear that the true purpose of God for humankind was for an everlasting life here on a paradise earth, but that is covered in another article. Nonetheless, we know that Adam gave up that perfect and everlasting life for whatever reason he may have had. Thus, our perfect and everlasting life was sacrificed to Adam's submission to sin and death … whether willfully or not. The woman has been made to pay ever since with the pangs of childbirth and the man with the sweat and thorns involved in the course of his work since no longer would everything be provided for him.
So now, just to make certain that you have all of this in order, humankind, through Adam, was given a perfect and everlasting life here on a paradise earth and gave it all up for the sake of sin and death. It does not make sense, but many things in this world do not, and since Eve had already sinned, who is to say what would have happened if things had of worked out differently, but they did not so this is where we are today. Now, our perfect life had been sacrificed … gone forever.
God did not just throw in the towel though. He did not destroy us in his wrath. He did not demonstrate his power by wiping the slate clean and starting over with a new Adam and Eve. Rather, he expressed his love by allowing us to continue in our limited existence and not sacrificing everyone for the actions of the one … although as we can see, our payments for Adam's actions continue to this day. Again, Adam had an everlasting and perfect life in a paradise earth and gave it up in accordance with his own will.
Fast forward to the times of Christ and look at the comparisons or even the contrasts as it may be. Christ came into the earth through an immaculate conception. While there are some that would doubt this and I will not get into that debate here, I will simply point out that in the original languages, that the Holy Spirit was a feminine word (As in languages which have a difference between masculine and feminine words) and in Peter (I think it is in Peter) the Bible says that Christ was begotten by a woman.
If you do not believe the immaculate conception, it may be a good idea to research a little more and see how your heart feels but it is imperative if you are to truly believe in the power of Christ and his position as the firstborn of all Creation since we see many times that Christ is the first in all things and through him all things were created.. Christ came into a very imperfect world and lived a perfect life acting only in accordance with God's will and not of his own.
Yes, I know all about the missing years in Egypt and perhaps Asia as well, but again, I have to believe that if it were important, it would have been told to us … and if there are no references to it anywhere in the Bible or other scrolls that have been found, it is of no importance. We know that even as a young man, Christ would literally debate with the Church leaders and it is doubtful that he was actually very welcome in the temples given his knowledge and passion for the scriptures. Given his knowledge and skills at that young age, I have no reason to doubt the veracity of his perfect life.
Still, we do see very human characteristics in Christ. Going back to the original languages, we can see word plays where Christ has made light of things most serious in nature and while not in any way degrading, do certainly indicate a sense of humor as well as love and understanding. We see his power as evidenced in his many miracles and the fact that he knew he picked a “devil” with Judas Iscariot … but again, he did what he did in accordance with God's will and not his own … no matter what his reasons were for selecting Judas, it is undeniable that it was indeed the will of God so that the prophecies could be fulfilled.
We see Christ's frailty and humanity in a blatant way before his capture and crucifixion telling us outright that if it was in God's will, that this burden, or this cup, could be removed from him … but that if it was in accordance with God's will, than let it be done. Yet Christ ransomed his perfect life in exchange for the perfect life that Adam had relinquished way back in the Garden of Eden. Like Adam who brought sin and death to all of us, Christ brought the opportunity for salvation for all of us with the sacrifice of his perfect life for our imperfect lives.
Thus it is that you will see the references to Christ being the last Adam or being compared to Adam. Christ has given us all the opportunity for salvation and my hopes and my prayers are not to teach you with what I write here, but to encourage you to read your own Bibles and allow God to open your heart … again, in accordance with his will.
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